Fry feeding question

[NinjaSmurf]

I read in a betta book that some breeders feed their fry newly hatched brine shrimp as their first food, and that the stronger ones are able to eat them, but the weaker ones aren't. Yet I read on the internet that none of them will be able to eat them and will die. I don't want a whole lot of fry and I thought this might be the best way to get the strongest fish out of the batch, but I don't want the whole batch to die on me if this is wrong. So which one is it really?

 

[bkk_group]

i know some breeders do this as a way of culling weak fish but we don't do it. newly hatched fry are fed vinegar eels for the first week, then we switch to bbs.

 

[wuvmybetta]

I start off with microworms and move on to bbs at about a week BUT I know a few breeders who have started using bbs and have had good luck with it. It makes sense that the weaker would die but seems kind of a harsh way of 'culling' early,sometimes your smallest fry turns out to be the best. PM endparenthisis, I believe he has some microworms that he'll send you, if not I will. They're kind of essential because the fry will graze on them day and night, a bbs only diet can lead to swim bladder problems so you need variety. PLUS bbs are a *****, they sometimes fail on you and you have to rely on them every day. If a hatchery fails one day,it's good to have mw's as a back up.

 

[small_fry]

i use infusoria **think i spelt it right lol** for the 1st week then bbs but once i did use bbs from day one but i think almost all lived mayb the od one or two died.

 

[NinjaSmurf]

I guess such is the way of bettas, so I can use it but it may or may not end up starving a bunch of the fry. Okay, now I asked someone else and they said that if I put plants in the tank with them they'll get infusoria from them. Will they get enough from the plants or will I have to extra? Also, the micro worms, how do you keep them alive and are they something that I can get at the pet store, because I don't know how much it would be to ship them from you Wuvmybetta. Also, I'm going to be moving soon, so they might get screwed up in the mail when I change my address.

 

[wuvmybetta]

The infusoria is good the fry will eat that for the first few days. MW's aren't readily available at a pet store. You can keep a culture alive forever if you take care of it. They only require some bread,yeast and water. I'll PM you with more info